Knitting-machine.



No. 674,667. Patented may 2|, |96l.

^ 6. BLoon, 1R.

KNITTING MACHINE.

(Applietion led July 27, 1899.) v (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.'

{QOOKJ 6' @Q No. 674,667. Patentd may 2|, |901.

s. BLonD, 1n.

KNITTING MACHINE.l (Application filed July 27, 1899.)

(No Model.) v 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

No. 674,667. Patented May 2|, |901.

6. BLOOD, ln. KNITTING MACHINE.

l(Application mea .my 21, 1899.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

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Pirzns ca. woaumo.. wAsmNuToN n c UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE BLOOD, JR., OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

KNlTTlNG-IVIACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 674,667, dated May 21, 1901.

Application filed July Z7, 1'899. Serial No. 725,214. (No model.)

To al?, whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE BLOOD, Jr., a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Knitting-Machines, of which the following is a specication.

This invention relates to an improvement upon or attachment for machines of the class referred to and described in Letters Patent of the United States Nos. 484,737, 484,738, 489,957, and 538,518, granted to H. A. Honseman, and other machines to which it is applicable.

The object of the invention is to produce by means of such a machine what is commonly designated lacework.

'Io this and other ends, hereinafter described, the invention comprises the improvements herein set forth and claimed.

The nature, characteristic features, and scope of the invention will be more fully nnderstood from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings,forming part hereof,and in Which- Figure 1 is a view diagram matically illustrating the character of work which it is intended to accomplish. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional View of a. needle-cylinder of the type set forth in said patents, showingin application thereto mechanism embodying features of my invention. Figs. 3 and 4 are respectively a side view and a plan of devices embodying features of my invention.

and constructed for cooperation with pivotal iingers that actuate the needles in the formation of lacework. Figs. 5 and 6 are respectively elevational and plan views of a knitting-machine of the type referred to provided with laceWork-making attachments embodying features of my invention, and Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic view hereinafter referred to.

In making lacework certain of the needles, varying in number and position according to the pattern to be produced, are taken out Of the machine. Certain needles whose immediate neighbors have been taken out of the machine are permitted to receive a number of courses of thread (the number varying with the pattern) before they throw olf the stitches. The result of this is illustrated in Fig. 1, in which 1 represents usual knitting, 2 represents a single Wale of knitting, and 3 represents a number of threads which present the appearance of lacework. The fabric is made by taking out the needles where the parts 3 are to appear, as illustrated at 4 in Fig. 7, by permitting a group of needles, as 5 in Fig. 7, to operate in the ordinary manner to produce the part l and-by causing the needles 6 of Fig. 7 to take up several courses of thread and to throwthem off in a group in order to produce the part 2 in Fig. l. In a machine of the class described in said patents pivotal levers, as 7, are provided for shifting the bits of the needles out of engagement With the cam 8 in order to fashion the work. The levers 7 for this purpose are actuated by a cam.9.

For the sake of clearness I will describe my invention in connection with the production of hosiery having the front portion thereof Ornamented by stripes of lacework and the back portion thereof plain, although it must be borne in mind that the invention is not limited to this class of articles. For this purpose certain of what I may call the instep-needles are removed to produce the empty places designated 4 in Fig. 7 and 3 in Fig. 1, and certain of the levers 7, that appertain to certain others of the instep-needles, are removed and replaced by pivotal fingers l0, which are turned, in a manner to be presently described, in such a way that their needles receive a predetermined number of courses of thread from the thread-carrier and then throw them all off again. Thus these needles correspond with the needles 6 of Fig. 7 and do the work designated 2 in Fig. 1. These fingers lO may be pivotally supported upon the pivots that are provided for the levers 7. In the case of a stocking to be ornamented in front with lacework the fingers l0 would extend at suitable intervals from veach other and about half-Way around the cylinder. The ngers l0 are to be so operated that their needles will remain in range of the thread-carrier until several courses of thread have been laid by it upon them and will then throw off these several ,courses at once. To accomplish this, the outer ends ofthe lingers may be held up, as shown at the right-hand side of Fig. 2, until the thread-carrier has laid IOO IOl

on the predetermined numberI of courses of thread. The effect of holding the outer ends of these iingers up is to cause the corresponding needle-bits to clear the cam S, and thus remainv at rest. After the predetermined number of courses has been laid onto these needles the outer ends of-the fingers are permitted to drop. Thus the needle-bits are brought into engagement with the cam 8 and all of the courses which these needles have collected are simultaneously thrown off by the normal action thereof. In the meantime all of the other needles in the machine are actuated by the devices which normally control them in such a way that they throw oli? each course of thread after it has been laid on them. The normal tendency of the needles is to spring outward, so that provision should be made to lift up the outer ends of the fingers and hold them up as long as necessary and then permit them to descend under the influence of the described tendency of the needles. To accomplish this result, use may be made of a lifter 1l, Fig. et, that engages the outer ends of the ngers 10 and is of the form of a circle or a part thereof. In the case of the production of stockings, such as described, the lifter is of circular form and embraces more than half of a circle. As shown in the drawings, this lifter is connected with a suitable toe 12, aorded a range of vertical motion in a bracket 13, secured to the machine and normallypressed by a spring 14 into contact with a toothed wheel 15. Suitable motion is imparted to this toothed wheel 15 from the machine by way of, for example, a pattern-chain, so that the movements of the Wheel, and consequently ot' the lifter and toe, may be changed in order to vary 'the number of courses of stitches that are thrown off at one time in the production of the lacework.

In use the machine operates in the manner described in said patents, except in so far as that certain of the needles are removed from it, as indicated at 4 in Fig. 7, and certain of the needles 6 in Fig. '7 are controlled by the ingers 10 in such a way that they receive several courses of thread in succession from the thread-carrier and then throw oft all of these courses at once. The Iingers 10 are caused to actuate these needles in this manner by reason of the intermittent rise and fall of the lifter 11, brought about by the action of the toothed wheel 15 upon the toe 12 and against the force of the spring 14.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which my invention appertains that modifications may be made in details without. departing from the spirit thereof. Hence I do not limit myself to the precise construction and arrangement of parts hereinabove set forth, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings; but,

Having thus described the nature and objects of my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination in a knitting-machine for producing tubular lacework of pivotal needle-actuating fingers for detaining ce1'- tain of the needles out of action and in position for the reception of several courses of thread, a lifter provided with a toe and afforded a vertical movement in respect to said fingers, and a toothed wheel and a spring for operating the lifter, substantially as described.

:2. The combination in a knitting-machine for producing tubular lacework of a needlecylinder from which some of the needles have been removed, a cam for actuating the needles, pivotal iingers for holding certain of the needles adjacent to the spaces from which needles are absent in position for receiving several courses of thread, a lifter provided with a toe and afforded a vertical movement in respect to said lingers, and a toothed Wheel and a spring for operating the lifter, su bstantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name.

GEORGE BLOOD, JR.

In presence of- W. J. JACKSON, A. B. S'roUGHToN. 

